I woke up early in the morning to wander around Singapore and savor my last two days there. After finishing the best Kaya Toast courtesy of my hostel, I immediately headed to Boon Keng station to find myself around Chinatown.

The street in Chinatown is usually busy and lined with bunch of eateries and restaurants, but since it was early morning, I was the only tourist walking around stopping by souvenir stores pretending to have interest.

All of a sudden, I felt bored. A flashback of curious young Ada together with blogger friends smacked me while walking towards the familiar street of Chinatown. I have been here before. We have been before.

After 15 minutes of going circles, I’ve come across the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple; I have seen the temple before only that we didn’t had the chance to see what’s inside because of limited time.

Moving forward, I arrived through the temple’s large heavy doors which called the Mountain Gate – a traditional Tang dynasty door; and by the way, there’s no entrance fee at Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, but they accept donations.

I walked towards the temple and saw a big pot for joss sticks, a burning incense which used by Buddhist for meditation and aromatherapy. There was a religious ceremony inside which I wasn’t sure if photo taking is allowed. I was very mindful of my act to not look rude during their ceremony.

Next, I went to Mezzanine Floor where the Dharma Hall is. The entire hall was like a museum of gold, I wondered if they were real gold as it looked very lavish.

There was also a group of tourists inside to which I pretend that I was part of. They went to the rooftop, so I followed them. I was freshened upon seeing the rooftop — it was lovely and fresh. A peaceful open space small garden with flowers mainly orchids. It was the perfect spot for relaxation, I then offered my prayers to one of the Buddhas.

After a while, I noticed that the group of tourists went to a Pagoda where a large Vairocana Buddha Prayer Wheel with scriptures surrounded by thousands of Buddhas is situated. It looked very interesting. They are revolving the wheel to read the scriptures to search for sutra.

Those at the wall surrounding the wheels are thousands of Buddhas

I have actually been to every floor of the temple but some floors prohibit picture taking and silence is always observed. The entire temple is an ideal place for people seeking peace of mind and short-term relaxation. Even if you’re not Buddhist, you can always participate in their ceremonies.

As I walked outside the temple, I realized I didn’t see any tooth relic inside. Was it literally a tooth? I was stupid enough to asked this to myself. Maybe I’ve seen it, I just didn’t know that it was.

At the end of the day, I suddenly had this curious interest to Buddhism. I remember watching a Travel Channel where a tourist engaged in Buddhism life by being a monk in just a day in a province in China. I was inspired by his unusual adventure. Perhaps one day I’ll engage myself as well when I travel there.

How To Get To Buddha Tooth Relic Temple

Ride MRT and alight at Exit A Chinatown Station. Walk along Pagoda St. until you see the South Bridge Road.

Location: 288 South Bridge Road, Singapore
Admission: Free
Hours of Operation: Monday to Sunday 07:00 a.m. to 07:00 p.m.